UBON RATCHATHANI (Thailand) – Malaysia’s hope of winning the ‘mother of all golds’ was dashed again when they lost 1-2 to Thailand in the ASEAN University Games (AUG) football final here today.
In the match at University of Ubon Ratchathani Rajabhat Stadium, Mohamad Syahir Abdul Rahman scored Malaysia’s solitary goal but it was too late to stop Thailand from retaining the football title in the 20th edition of AUG.
Malaysia had a better share of exchanges in the first half but failed to convert the chances that came their way.
It was Thailand who drew first blood when Chanmunti Kantinan scored in the 23rd minute.
Chanmunti widened the lead for the home team by finding the net just before the half-time whistle.
After the interval, coach Ridzuan Abu Shah’s charges again mounted attacks but still failed to breach the Thai defence.
Malaysia had to wait until the 78th minute before Mohamad Syahir scored. The score stayed at 2-1 until the final whistle.
“As you could see in the early stages, the match was a bit slow and the opponents then scored their first goal.
“We tried to come back but made another mistake which allowed Thailand to score again. We finally managed to score but it was too late. Overall, I’m satisfied with our performance,” he added.
The silver medal effort is Malaysia’s best achievement in AUG, matching their performance in 2008 in Kuala Lumpur where they also lost to Thailand in the final.
